


headspace

by jlineluvbot



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Heartbreak, Self-Discovery, Two Shot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-01
Updated: 2019-07-22
Packaged: 2020-06-02 02:30:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19432066
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jlineluvbot/pseuds/jlineluvbot
Summary: Momo is dealing with the news that she can never dance again professionally.Mina is dealing with a breakup.Their broken hearts lead them on a journey of self discovery.in europe?!?!?!?!?1





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Original title for this was Mimo's Unhelpful Guide to Mending a Broken Heart but it's been changed.

\--

It was quiet _._ Well, it would’ve been if it weren’t for the incessant downpour of rain hitting the roof of the car Momo and Sana were sitting in.

There was palpable tension within the confinements of this four-door vehicle. Not because either party held any hatred toward each other. But because normally, Sana would be the one to break the awkward silence surrounding them by starting up a conversation. Now though, she was unsure if it would be an appropriate time to discuss the situation at hand. For a while, Sana was content with leaving her friend alone because she knew from experience that the best way to deal with a depressed Momo was to give her time. The downside to that plan was that time wasn’t a luxury they could afford. They needed to act fast if they were to have any chance of switching Momo’s major and Sana suspected this would be one the last opportunity she had to speak to her friend before she locked herself away in her room for god knows how long. Sana decided she had no other choice as she ran a hand through her hair and drew in a deep breath before breaking the silence.

“Look, I know you don’t feel like talking right now, I mean fuck, I don’t feel like talking right now. But we need to work out what we are going to do.” Sana paused for a few seconds to take a peek at Momo to make sure she was listening before returning her eyes to the road. “it’s five thirty now so by the time we get back to campus, the dean would probably have left. So, I was thinking that first thing tomorrow, we beeline straight to his office before classes start, so we can discuss the possibility of you changing-”, Sana was unable to finish her sentence before Momo cut in.

“I’m not changing Majors Sana.”

“Momo, you heard the doctor, any more damage to your knee will be permanent, you can’t risk it!”

“I know,” she replied solemnly, “I’m dropping out of university completely.”

“What!?” Sana’s eyes shot in Momo’s direction. “What are you talking about?”

“I spoke with my parents last night because I wasn’t liking my chances of the doctor delivering good news today. We discussed my options, and both agreed that it would be best that I move back to Japan.”

“What!?”

It took a while for Sana to register what the girl beside her was saying. _Leaving Korea?_ For Sana, the thought of not having Momo by her side wasn’t exactly something she had considered, like, ever. Ever since they met in high school they got along like a house on fire. They were, for all intents and purposes, a combo deal. The other friends they made over time would soon find that out. Any form of understanding that Sana possibly could have had if it were someone else was completely lost in the situation because, well, because it was Momo. This meant Sana’s initial instinct was flat out denial. “Momo you can’t just leave, you have your whole life here, your job, your friends. Your-”

“I know, but honestly Sana, I need time to think. Dance is the one thing in this world which isn’t food that I am truly, deeply passionate about. I think time away would be healthy, it would give me a chance to discover myself and maybe find something else I’m passionate about. I know it’s oddly presumptuous of me, but I don’t think I’ll be able to do that if I stay in Korea.”

“Why not?”

Momo sighs “I love it here in Korea and I have every intention of returning once I find myself again. But it’s something I feel that need to do on my own.”

Sana was conflicted, on one hand, realistically, what her friend was suggesting was completely fucking ridiculous. Momo had already invested a lot of time and money into college, so to give up now would render all of it redundant. On top of that, Momo had just recently gotten hired at a nearby pet store thanks to their friend Tzuyu who already worked there and had put in a good word to the manager. Pair that with the sheer logistics of Momo packing up her whole life and returning back home, the thought of it happening was almost inconceivable.

On the other hand, Sana found herself surprisingly quite relieved, relieved that Momo’s injury didn’t completely kill the fire inside her. She hadn’t given up on herself just yet and instead opted for a do over, a second chance at possibly finding something else she was passionate about. Perhaps the emotion coursing through Sana most prominently at that moment was not sadness, but happiness as a result of how proud she was of Momo. It was at this point Sana realized she didn’t want to be a roadblock in someone else’s pursuit of happiness, especially someone she cared about a great deal. So, after a long-winded sigh, she finally conceded.

“Don’t think you’re getting rid of me that easily!” Sana whines. Causing Momo to flinch at the sudden outburst. “I’ll be visiting every chance I get you hear me Hirai! Christmas, birthdays, long weekends, spur of the moment 2-day vacations, regular phone calls, you name it. I’m going to bug you so much you’re gonna wish you had stayed! You better answer when I ring you as well and not just ignore me; international calling is expensive!”

“Facetime me then dummy.” Momo responded teasingly. “It’s free, all you need is an internet connection. And yes, I will answer, I always do! Eventually.” Momo couldn't help but chuckle at Sana’s sudden outburst.

“I don’t have a clue what the future holds for me but, who knows, maybe my journey of self-discovery will be shorter than expected, Maybe I’ll come back really soon with a newfound drive and you won’t have even noticed I was gone.”

Sana smiled at the thought, though she knew it was impossible. Momo’s presence never goes unnoticed and neither does her absence.

“I personally don’t think it’s a very pragmatic solution. But at the end of the day, I just want you to be happy and if you truly think this idea is the right way to go about attaining said happiness, then I support you all the way.”

“Thanks.” Was all Momo had the strength to say in between quiet sobs that she (unsuccessfully) attempted to mask by coughing.

“When are you going to tell the others?” Sana questioned.

“I don’t know. I don’t know if I should do it individually or all together. What do you think?” Momo says as she turns to look at the blonde seated next to her.

“We’re supposed to be meeting up on Saturday for dinner, all of us, I say do it then.” Sana shrugs, earning an agreeing nod from Momo.

“Okay.”

The rest of the drive was quiet, both girls had run out of things to say. Sana was still trying to wrap her head around the thought of her best friend moving away. Momo, in the passenger seat, was fighting to hold back tears because perhaps the concept of saying goodbye to the friends she had made during her time in Korea was more heart-breaking than the loss of her dream career.

\--

Meanwhile, in a nearby area of Seoul, another girl was dealing with her own drastic life changes.

\--

4 hours had passed, and Mina was still deep in concentration as she hammered away at the keyboard on her laptop. While Momo’s coping mechanism for a broken heart was to take time alone to sulk and clear her mind. Mina took the opposite approach and flooded her mind with the contents of her research paper that wasn’t due for another 2 weeks. Both have their ups and downs, and both are rather effective up until a certain point. For Mina, that point was when she realized that she had actually finished what she was working on.

Predicting that she had probably blinked less than ten times in the last hour, Mina took the following moments to shut her eyes for a while and take a couple deep breaths.

Her eyes wandered around her apartment once she reopened them, observing. At a first glance, everything looked the same. Only, it felt empty. Likely because the other side of the bed, or the wasn’t occupied by a certain someone. There wasn’t a voice beckoning her to stop playing her video games and come to bed or a hand creeping up her thigh, coercing her to put down her schoolwork. Trivial gestures, sure, but they made her feel wanted. All of that was gone now, Mina was alone in her apartment.

In an attempt to suppress the oncoming emotions, Mina scrambled to find something to take her attention away from her own thoughts. This was when she noticed her phone sitting on the table next to her and reached for it, realizing she hadn’t bothered to look at it since she got home. The lock screen that displayed a picture of her and her now ex, was blurred by the messages she had missed since she decided to bury herself into her schoolwork. The messages were from a group chat she was in with her friends that were studying the major. It was their group chat they used away from the big group chat with everyone in it so they could discuss school in peace. Lately, however, the group chat was used to discuss other things, namely, Momo.

**5:33pm - Jihyo: So how was the doctors? What did they say?**

**5:40pm - Sana: There will be permanent damage if she injures her knee again. So basically, dancing is out of the realm of possibility.**

**5:41pm - Jihyo: Fuck. How is she, is she okay? Can I ring her?**

**5:41pm - Sana: Actually, she’s kind of doing quite well? I mean, as well as she can be for someone who’s just had her dreams crushed. But I’m confident she will get through this.**

**5:41pm - Sana: She has some other news as well, but I think she wants to tell everyone in person this weekend. Are we still on for that?**

**5:42pm – Jihyo: Yes of course, Nayeon and I have been going back and forth about which restaurant we should book in for. At the moment we’re at odds between ‘Tequila Mockingbird’ and that Mexican joint a few blocks from Mina’s place, ‘Juan in a Million’.**

**5:45pm – Sana: Tequila Mockingbird? isn’t that a bar?**

**5:46pm – Jihyo: That’s what I told Nayeon, but she just shrugged at me and said, “What’s your point bitch?”.**

**5:47pm – Sana: LOL… Well, it isn’t a horrible idea. Plus, we wouldn’t need to book in there. Shouldn’t Chaeng be the one who gets to decide where we go anyway? She is the reason we’re celebrating after all.**

**5:50pm – Jihyo: I asked her, but she said she doesn’t really mind, so long as we are there.**

Mina’s heart sank halfway through reading Sana and Jihyo’s conversation as the thoughts of Momo and her injury came rushing back. _I am the worst fucking friend ever._ She thought to herself. She knew of Momo’s situation but was so preoccupied with the drama taking place in her own life that she had forgotten all about her friend’s appointment today. _I should text her._ Was Mina’s first thought. Then she remembered that distancing herself from everything and everyone was just how Momo dealt with tough situations. She thought maybe it would be best to wait until tomorrow.

Mina navigated through her phone until she reached the text conversation screen between her and Momo. She took some time to scroll up and read a few of their past exchanges. A gut-wrenching sight really. As is turned out, a good portion of their past conversations were Momo checking up on Mina to see if she was okay as she was well aware of her and ex’s problems. The gut-wrenching part was that Mina had hardly reciprocated that support when Momo injured herself. Mina is well aware that if Momo knew of the guilt Mina was feeling she would get a smack on the arm for being stupid. Still though, she can’t help but feel immense sadness. The least she could do now would be to return the favour by offering her own support.

She tapped on the text box under their conversation and began typing.

**7:30pm - Mina: Hey, Momoring. I heard the news and I’m so sorry. If you want someone to talk to, or a shoulder to cry on please don’t hesitate to give me a buzz. It’s an offer with no expiry date. <3**

Mina didn’t expect Momo to reply, not tonight anyway. Momo was difficult to reach at the best of times and these were certainly not the best of times. Suffice to say she was surprised to see a reply from Momo when she returned from her hunt for food in the kitchen.

\--

Momo had been crying uncontrollably since she faceplanted onto her own bed. Sana had to go to work so there was nothing and no one stopping her from doing so. That was until her phone started buzzing.

It was Mina.

Momo read her messaged and sighed. She knew Mina was also going through a rough patch, so she was really grateful that the younger girl was the first to reach out this time.

For a second Momo thought about turning her phone off and climbing under the covers to continue her bout of crying. She would come up with an excuse later, she fell asleep or something.

Then Momo thought maybe it wasn’t just an offer for her but possibly a cry for help as well. Mina seemed okay on the surface most of the time but Momo had gotten pretty good at reading her over the years. She could tell when Mina was sad but didn’t want to show it. Momo was worried that maybe this was one of those times. She hadn’t seen Mina in a while so wanted to confirm her suspicions. 

_Fuck it._ She thought, unlocking her phone.

**7:36pm - Momo: Hey Mina. Thank you, I appreciate it. <3 Would you mind if I cashed in that offer now?**

Two minutes later Momo’s phone buzzed again. It was Mina.

**7:38pm – Mina: No of course not! I can meet now. Where did you want to go?**

\--

“I thought we were getting a coffee, why are we at a bar?” Mina whined as the two girls found refuge at a table in the far corner of the room, they had just entered

“Hush now Minari.” Momo chided. “You offered me a shoulder to cry on and I assumed it that I was also able to choose where I cry on that shoulder. Besides, you’re not saying no to a drink, are you? Not even one?”

Mina wasn’t much of a drinker in all honesty, but with the week she had, it would be good to unwind a little.

“I guess, since we’re already here. We might as well have a glass. One glass.” 

As is an often occurrence in a bar, one drink turned to three and before long, both parties had all but run out of non-touchy topics of discussion thus marking the beginning of an awkward silence. It seemed they both dreaded addressing the glaringly obvious elephants in the room

Momo decided to take the plunge first.

“So how did it go with her?”.

“We’re done, for good this time.” Mina replied, eyes downcast with a look that Momo could only describe as being both sad and terrified.

The thought of Mina being in obvious emotional turmoil was eating Momo alive. She hates nothing more than seeing her friend in scared, in pain or in danger, she would much rather inflict that pain on herself. One time, during a college party in freshman year, a group of sophomore guys were peer pressuring Mina into dancing on the table without her top on. They dismissed Mina’s many refusals and started harassing flat out her, it was at that point Momo had noticed what was going on and stepped in. It was safe to say that Momo was absolutely furious. So much so that her first port of call wasn’t to just simply grab her terrified friend and get the fuck out of there, but to grab the nearest empty bottle and smash it over the head of the person who was making the most advances. A knight in shining armour, you could call it, or a guardian angel, Momo didn’t care. As long as her friends were safe, that was enough for her.

Instead of offering words of wisdom or joking to lighten the gloomy mood, Momo didn’t say anything, she just reached out to put a hand over Mina’s as the younger girl wiped a stray tear from the corner of her eye.

“Anyway,” Mina sniffled, trying to regain composure. “I’m not the only one who’s had their world turned upside down recently. How are you?”

Momo pondered the younger girls’ question for a few seconds. Debating about how much she of the truth she should let out. “I’d be lying if I said I was fine. But I think I’ll get through this.”

Mina hummed in agreement. “I know it’s very soon, but have you put in any thought as to what you’re going to do, which Major you want to switch to?”

Momo paused for a unsure of whether or not she should tell Mina of her plan to leave Korea. In the end she decided that Mina would find out eventually so there was no real harm in spilling it now. “Yeah, about that. I was actually planning on waiting till the weekend to tell you, well, to tell everyone what my future plans are. But since you’re here I may as well let you know…” she took a few seconds to form the announcement before her friend cut the silence.

“Momo hurry up!” Mina cried sarcastically. “The suspense is killing me!”

“Okay okay.” Momo replied, raising both arms in surrender. “Um… well… I’m leaving… Korea.” Before Mina could inject a reply, Momo continued, adding her reasoning behind the decision. “I spoke with my parents and they thought it would be best if I moved back home for a while, to have some time to think.”

Momo was waiting for the moment where Mina scolded her for suggesting such a moronic idea, but that moment never came. Instead, to Momo’s surprise, Mina agreed. “Oh… I uh- I think it’s a good idea.”

“What?” The question left Momo’s mouth so quickly that it almost seemed like she wanted to Mina to talk her out of it and was disappointed when she did the opposite.

Mina noticed the older girl’s confusion and just shrugged. “I mean, I can’t say it’s a flawless plan. But sometimes you need to put your mental health first.”

“You really think so?” Momo questioned, still shocked that Mina didn’t see her as a complete idiot.

“Yeah, some time away from everything could help. I wish I could do that.”

“Well why don’t you?” Momo wondered

“Why don’t I what?” Mina asked, unsure of what Momo was trying to get at.

“Take a break from everything, with everything you’ve been through lately, you could use a holiday.”

For a moment Mina studied the older girls face and noticed no signs of wavering expressions. _She’s actually serious?_ “No well I mean I can’t-”

“Mina. You literally just, like five seconds ago, said that sometimes you need to put your mental health first. Take your own advice.”

Mina rolled her eyes as her arms crossed over each other, annoyed at how much sense her friend was beginning to make. “You know I can’t just vanish like that; I have a mountain of schoolwork that needs to be done.”

Momo knew instantly that she was lying, Mina fails to keep eye contact when she lies. “I call bullshit.” She said matter of factly, causing Mina to flinch.

“Even if I did want to take a break, I wouldn’t want to go back to Japan.”

“Then we won’t go back home, we’ll go somewhere else, we’ll travel the world. You’ve always wanted to go to Hawaii, haven’t you?”

“Momo this is fucking crazy.” Mina whined.

“I know it is, but sometimes in life. ‘crazy’ and ‘necessary’ don’t always run parallel to each other. Sometimes they intersect and I think that this is one of those times!” Momo says, thumping the table with her index finger to add emphasis. 

Mina sat idle. Momo was right, a vacation was exactly what she both needed and wanted. Still though, the consequences seemed to greatly outweigh the benefits that sporadic voyage across the globe would provide. Mina was still against the idea.

Momo realized as such. But she knows Mina, and she knew that she was actually considering it. So, as a somewhat last-ditch attempt to convince the her, Momo reached for her purse and rummaged around, searching for her wallet.

“What are you doing?” Mina asked, slightly on edge.

“Just a second- ah, there we are.” She said as she pulled her hand from her purse. With it, came a gold coin which only further added to Mina’s confusion. “What’s that for?” She asked. “So we can decide whether you’ll take my, well, your own advice and come on a trip with me.”

“So, we’re going to decide a potentially life changing decision by flipping a coin?” Mina scoffed.

“That’s exactly what we’re gonna do.” Momo said eagerly. Causing Mina to once again roll her eyes.

“Just hear me out.” Momo pleaded. “Heads you go, tails you stay.”

“That is the worst idea I’ve ever heard.” Mina deadpanned.

“Trust me it isn’t, this is the best way to find out if you really want to go.”

“How on earth is this the best way?”

“Because it doesn’t matter what the coin lands on, you’re going to either be glad or disappointed depending on the result.”

“I’m not really following.”

“You’ll know straight away when the coin lands whether or not your happy with the result. If you are, take it, if you’re not then your gut is telling you to take the other option. Does that make sense?” Momo queries.

“Uhh kind of.” Mina answered, still uncertain. “Let’s just do it and get this over with.”

Momo handed Mina the coin and watched as the younger girl placed it between her thumbnail and index finger before taking a deep breath. Swiftly, Mina flicked her thumb upwards past her index finger, propelling the coin into the air. It bounced off the table in front of them and fell to the floor causing both girls to rise from their seats searching for the verdict.

Tails.

“Fuck.” Mina whispered under her breath.

Her heart sank. Momo was right. Mina wasn’t happy with the result. She surmised that her intuition was telling her to go. 

“You were right.” Mina mumbled, slightly embarrassed.

“I was?” Momo asked, a little worried.

“Yep, there’s no point lying to you, you can always tell when I am. I’m disappointed with the result.”

“Haha! I knew it!” Momo exclaimed, victoriously.

Mina nodded and spoke slowly, without inflection. “Okay, let’s do it.” Causing Momo to almost spit out her drink.

“What? you’ll go?”

“We.” Mina replied, sternly.

“Oh, right yeah of course… We.” 

Momo grabbed her glass and raised it, smile beaming as her eyes met Mina’s. “Cheers. to a fresh start.”

“Cheers.” Mina responded, raising her own glass.

\--

Saturday had rolled around far too quickly for Mina’s liking. Time only seemed to stop for her when her phone buzzed almost hourly with messages from Momo asking if she had cold feet. Time hadn’t heightened her worries; it instead heightened her excitement. Europe was the destination they had decided on, but they had no set itinerary, they were just going to go wherever the wind took them. The thought of being absent from college for a semester did cause Mina a fair bit of anxiety but Momo reminded her that the school wasn’t going anywhere, it would still be there when they got back. Pretty sound advice. All in all, Mina’s anxiety about college was pretty well contained.

Now she was nervous about telling her friends about their impromptu vacation. Momo offered to take the reigns on that front, which Mina gratefully accepted. But for some reason, she was still nervous.

For the longest time, Mina tried to put up a confident façade when she was with her friends. Rarely wavering and hardly ever allowing anyone to see her vulnerable side. So to admit to her peers that she wasn’t coping well seemed like a very daunting prospect. Nevertheless it had to be done.

\--

9 girls were seated at a table at ‘Tequila Mockingbird’ Celebrating their friend Chaeyoung’s acceptance to art school. They talked, drank, ate and then drank some more.

Momo could tell during night that the other girls, save Sana and Mina, would halt their conversations whenever she spoke, as if they were waiting for her to say something, exponentially increasing her anxiety.

When Momo learned that the rest of them planned to relocate back to Jihyo, Nayeon and Jeongyeon’s shared apartment after dinner, she thought it would probably be best if she just waited until they were there to spill the beans. Hopefully Dahyun, who was already showing visible signs of tipsiness would stay awake that long. After a couple more rounds, they decided they would head off. Momo threw Dahyun’s arm over her shoulder and guided the younger girl as they exited the bar.

It wasn’t a long commute to Jihyo’s apartment, just a couple blocks away. Before long, they had arrived.

There was a moment of quiet when everyone was busy shifting to find a seat either on the couch or on the floor, or… in Sana’s case, on someone else’s (Jihyo) lap. Momo saw it as a good opportunity to get it over and done with. Now or never. 

“Uh guys.” Momo said awkwardly as the everyone else snapped their attention to her in record time. She cleared her throat. “I have an announcement to make.”

“Oh finally.” Nayeon and Jeongyeon groaned, almost simultaneously.

“Sorry?” Momo questioned, caught off-guard.

“Sorry Momoring but we know already, please don’t take it out on Sana, we practically pried it out of her the other day.” Jeongyeon answered.

Momo winced as her eyes snapped to Sana who was looking away sheepishly, trying to avoid eye contact. She then looked at Mina who seemed to be just as shell-shocked as she was. Just as Momo was about to respond, someone else beat her to it.

“And just so you know, we all support your decision to go back to Japan for a while. We’ll miss you but we understand you need some time alone.” Nayeon said. Followed by a chorus of agreeing nods and hums from the rest of the group.

Oh. Right, Momo hadn’t told Sana the updated version of her plan.

“Well actually, that’s not it.” Momo said with a nervous chuckle.

Now it was Jihyo’s turn to be curious. “Then what were you going to say?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Well… I am leaving Korea, but I’m not going back home. I’m going to Europe. And… I’m not going alone either.” Momo then looked over at a visibly shaken Mina who was nervously fidgeting with the hem of her shirt, “I’m going with Mina.”

Seven jaws. And yes, Momo counted. Seven jaws hung open at her revelation.

For what Momo and Mina would describe as an eternity, but in reality, was only a few seconds, there was stunned silence.

“What the fffuck.” Was the first response from across the room, it was Dahyun. Dahyuns response was then followed by a “Holy shit.” from Chaeyoung. 

Sana sat up, Momo’s announcement clearly piquing her interest. “Wait what? Both of you are going? I mean, I understand why Momo’s leaving, but Mina why are you going? We still have 2 months of school left!”

This was the moment Mina had dreaded all week, having to tell her friends that she wasn’t coping well with her recent breakup and that she needed a break from everything. She began fiddling with her fingernails to calm herself. Then she spoke. “It’s no secret that I’ve been going through some stuff lately. And I guess I realized the way I was going about dealing with it wasn’t very healthy. I was overloading myself with schoolwork, trying to occupy myself by staying busy.”

It was silent for a while, Mina guessed everyone was still trying to wrap their heads around the news. So, she continued. “I’m sorry if I’ve been distant lately, I’ve been trying to put up a strong front, I wanted to show everyone that I’m okay when in reality I’m not. I guess I was a bit ashamed.” The last few words were accompanied by a sniffle as tears were beginning to form.

Perhaps what was most surprising for Mina wasn’t the fact that she had allowed herself to get so worked up in front of everyone, but probably the physical feeling of being engulfed in a giant hug sandwich by Sana Nayeon and Jeongyeon, who she was sat in between.

“Nawww my little Minari.” Nayeon whimpered as she kissed Mina’s cheek, saddened by her confession.

Sana consoled the younger girl. “Like Nayeon said to Momo, we’ll miss you, but you deserve a break.”

“You’re not against it?” Mina asked.

“I’m sad that I probably won’t see either of you for quite some time. But I told Momo in the car the other day that if you truly think this is the best way to find happiness, I’ll support you.”

“Same.” Tzuyu broke her silence for the first time since Momo began speaking. “It breaks my heart, seeing you sad unnie. If there’s even a small chance that a trip like this can bring back some happiness, I say you take it.”

If Mina wasn’t technically crying before, she was now. As soon as the first tear broke free, a constant stream flowed down her cheeks like a river. “Tzuyu when did you get so wise?” Jeongyeon asked to which the younger girl just shrugged.

“This is so not fair! I want to on a life changing field trip!” Chaeyoung cried, followed by a “Yeah me too!” from Dahyun, both of which, earned a scolding from Jihyo. “Be quiet you. You just got into art school they won’t hesitate to kick you out. And Dahyunnie you just got back from vacation you don’t need to go on another one.” Dahyun and Chaeyoung both muttered incomprehensible sentences of defeat under their breaths, knowing that Jihyo was right.

Momo, who had taken a back seat to all the commotion decided now would be a good time to air her own concerns. “Wait a minute. So, none of you are against Mina and I going on this crazy adventure?”

“No, we’re not Mr Baggins. Why? Do you want us to be?” Jeongyeon retorted. She opened her mouth again to say something else before Nayeon interrupted her. “Perhaps we’d be more worried if you were going overseas by yourself but since Mina’s going with you, you should be fine.”

Momo didn’t really have a reply to that. She knew as long as they had each other they would be fine.

“Minari, since you’re going overseas, we need you to set up an Instagram account” Sana said stroking the younger girl’s hair.

“Why?” Mina asked.

“So you can upload all the photos that Momo takes of you! You better take lots of photos of Mina!” Sana demanded, as she turned to Momo, sending her a death stare. Mina just sighed in defeat, knowing it was a pointless battle she had no chance winning.

“Yeah of course I will.” Momo nodded.

“By the way, Momo,” Sana added, “You said your parents advised you to go back home, how do they feel about this.”

“They were dead against it until I mentioned Mina would be coming with me. It’s almost like no one thinks I can do this by myself! I totally can!”

“I know you can.” Mina cooed as she latched her hand onto Momo’s arm. “But we’re stronger together.”

Together.

“Yeah, we are.” Momo nodded.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Changing the title of this fic because i get an eye sore whenever i look at it. 
> 
> this was meant to be done like 2 weeks ago but life got in the way, sorry. 
> 
> this was initially meant to be a 2 shot but i have since made the executive decision to turn it into a 3 part (possibly 4 part) multi chapter fic
> 
> story reference: i know nothing about photography so i don't get technical about camera's and lenses and all that jazz.  
> also, Mimo are decent at english, not perfect, but a solid 6/10

_“I’m so sorry baby.”_

_“It’s ok.” Mina replied._

_“I’ve just been so busy lately and I don’t know, I guess it just slipped my mind. I was hoping this would be a good start to making it up to you.”_

_A small black box was placed in Mina’s hands and as she removed the lid, a beautiful rose colored watch was revealed from underneath. She is by no means an expert when it comes to watches but from the way it looked and how it felt in her hands, she suspected it to have cost a pretty penny._

_“It’s beautiful, thank you.” Mina whispered._

_“You know I love you, right?”_

_“Of course.”_

As Mina’s eyes fell upon the small jewellery box on her desk, she thought to herself just how ironic it was. Her former girlfriend bought her an expensive watch, yet had no time for her. 

If anything, it only further solidified what she had come to realise as the issues of their relationship started to unfold; they barely knew each other. The physical attraction was there, certainly, but there wasn’t much past that. If they did know each other well, she probably would have gotten something that she actually likes, a video game or a knitting kit. It was a sweet gesture, but it was more of a ‘I don’t know what the fuck the get you because I have no clue what you like so I’ll just buy you a watch’ kind of gift. 

Unfortunately, relationships like these were not foreign to Mina. The repetitive motion of putting in 100% to only receive 30% back has become somewhat of a theme in her love life and despite her best efforts to keep things under control, it has slowly taken a toll.

Loneliness is her biggest fear. 

\--

Anxiety. As the day of their departure drew closer, this became a more common feeling for Momo. The thought of the trip looming constantly in the back of her mind, it was inescapable. They were going to have a good time, of that, she was sure. But she couldn’t help but worry about what was going to happen when they returned, she couldn’t just leave forever. Eventually, she would have to go back to the real world and figure out what she was going to do with her life. The addition of Mina only cemented this fact. Now she wasn’t going alone so there was a level of responsibility on her part. Momo couldn’t keep Mina away from everything in her life for too long and Mina for sure wouldn’t go back without Momo so she wouldn’t really have a choice. Another reason for Momo’s worries, Mina. They were friends, yes, but they’ve belonged to such a large and tight-knit friend group for so long that they would seldom spend time with each other without the presence of someone else, whether it be Sana or Jihyo or whoever. So the thought of it only being the two of them was a little nerve-wracking. What if they had personality clashes? Where Momo can be brash and make hasty decisions, Mina is more careful and often takes time to think things through (If you ignore the fact that she made the decision to put her entire life on hold so she could gallivant around the world on the toss of a coin).

The thump of the front door closing indicated that someone had arrived, followed by the sound of a pair of heels clacking against the floor tiles. Momo didn’t need to look up, she knew who it was.

“You’re home early.” Momo said, attention still fixated on the folding of her favourite track suits.

Sana sighed. “Yeah, class finished early. How are you feeling?”

“Fine, I guess. Just finishing up packing.”

“Do you think you have room for one more item?”

“I don’t think you’re gonna fit in my suitcase.” Momo sniggered to herself, it was a lame joke but those were always her favourite.

Sana rolled her eyes. “Not me. I bought you something.”

Momo’s eyes lit up as she had a penchant for gifts. “Oh? What is it?”

Sana reached down at her purse and fished around until she located what she was looking for and pulled it out. A book.

“Here.” She said, extending her arm out.

“A book?” Momo asked confusedly.

“It’s a journal.” Sana answered.

“What for?”

“For you to write in of course!"

“Why would I? I’m not really a writer.”

“You don’t have to be a writer. It’s a good way to express your feelings.”

Momo realized the direction this was going and shut it down, almost instinctively. “No. No thanks, I don’t need it, I’m good. Thank you for the generous thought but really its o—”

“Just give me a second so I can explain, alright?” Sana pleaded.

Momo surrendered, noticing that Sana’s serious expression was unwavering. “Okay, fine.”

“Look, I know you’re going through a tough time at the moment and I also know that you like to bury your emotions, never letting them see the light of day. And that can be really unhealthy. So, I bought you this diary… or journal… whatever you want to call it, it doesn’t matter. The point is, you can use this however you see fit. You can use it to vent your feelings or express your emotions, whatever you want, just don’t keep them bottled up inside.”

“I don’t know about this.” Momo said, running her finger over the textured cover.

“Please just give it a try, I promise you will feel much better, it’s what I used when my dog passed away.”

“Really? I had no idea.”

“I kept it a secret, you know better than most that I was so heartbroken when he died, it felt like a piece of me had died with him. I was having a really hard time and could barely cope with daily life. That’s when I got a journal and just started writing in it.”

“What did you write about?” Momo questioned pensively.

“Anything and everything, it differed from day to day. Some days I would just pour out all my anger towards the world and life onto the page and afterwards I would burn it. I know it sounds cheesy but it was kind of like a symbolic way of releasing my emotional burden.”

“A little cheesy.” Momo chuckled. “But it’s actually kind of beautiful.” 

Sana smiled. “Other times I would just write about my day, no anger, just my own thoughts. I kept those entries and every now and then I would go back and read them to see the progress I had made.”

Momo thought deeply about it, maybe it was a good idea. 

“I don’t even know where to begin.”

Sana spent a moment pondering what Momo said. “Maybe start with your day, the best part the worst part. The most important thing is to be honest with yourself, this is your journal after all, no one is going to read it but you.”

“I don’t know if I’m ready to do that.”

“Well, okay, how about you write about something that makes you happy? Why don’t you write about Mina?”

As fate would have it, Momo was middle of drinking her Boba tea in this moment and subsequently proceeded to spit it out when Sana’s words registered in her brain. “What?” Momo nearly screamed as she wiped the Boba tea residue from her chin.

“Okay, gross.”

“What do you mean write about Mina?”

“She makes you happy, doesn’t she?”

“Well… sure but—”

“Then write about her.”

Momo was seconds away from going off on Sana who had noticed as such and decided to pry further. “What’s wrong?”

“You know what’s wrong!”

“No I don’t? do I?”

“You’re pretending like your question wasn’t loaded with implications!”

“What was I implying exactly?”

“Don’t play dumb! You’re implying that I have a crush on her!”

“On who?”

“Sana!” Momo shouted as she leaped towards Sana from her previous seated position on the couch.

Sana was half expecting a reaction like this and wanted to tread the fine line of Momo’s temper. A failure, she was unable to surrender to explain before she was tackled to the ground and assaulted with an onslaught of tickling to both her ribcages. “Okay okay! Wai- ouch! Stop okay I’m sorry!”

Momo ceased fire before speaking. “Explain yourself.”

“It’s just, there’s this weird sort of tension between you two and I’m pretty sure you guys are the only ones who don’t feel it, as weird as it sounds.”

Momo found that her patience was wearing thin when Sana stopped speaking but clearly had more to say.

“And? Continue!”

“Okay, um, well… for starters, you listen to Mina far more than you listen to anyone else.”

“Not true.”

“Yes, it is! I know you Hirai! She is the only person on this planet that could have convinced you to not leave Korea and I’m certain that if she told you to stay, you would.”

“Okay, so I respect her opinion, what about it?” Momo hissed.

”i’ve also noticed how you stare at her when she’s not looking.”

Momo was a little annoyed that this was even a topic worth discussing. “Okay, so far we’ve established that she gives good advice and she’s pretty. I enjoy good advice and I have two perfectly good eyes.”

"It's not just that. You smile at the mere mention of her name and-” Sana was summarily interrupted when Momo’s phone started buzzing from her coffee table.

“Who is it?” Sana asked as she stared at Momo who had quickly removed herself from atop of the younger girl.

No answer but Sana noticed a slight smile on Momo’s lips as her eyes were glued to her phone screen.

“Oh, uh, no one.” Momo stuttered, placing her phone into her pocket.

“It was Mina wasn’t it?”

“No.” 

“Liar.” Sana smirked.

It was. Mina had sent her a selfie at work.

—

_Dear diary:_

_So, like, I don’t really know how to start this, I’ve never owned a diary before. Today was rather boring, I just finished up the last of my packing. We leave in 2 days. Mina sent me a selfie of her farewell lunch at her part time job. I’m glad she’s coming with me, truly. But part of me feels guilty for stealing her away from everyone and everything._

_I’d be lying if I said I’m okay, I’m not. I want to explain everything, but I don’t think I can right now. Baby steps, Sana said._

—

“That’s it, now stay there, don’t move!” Momo called as she shifted backwards to get a better angle. “Now point to the sign and smile-- No, smile at me, not the sign you fool.”

“Is this really necessary?” Mina huffed, unenthused and a little embarrassed about her current state.

“Yep, the girls collectively decided that they were going to disown me if I don’t take enough photos of you.”

“They wouldn’t actually do that you know.” Mina protested.

“Perhaps.” Momo shrugged. “But I think I’d miss Dahyunnie’s hugs far too much to risk it.” 

Mina pouted. “I don’t think you understand how humiliating this is for me. We haven’t even boarded!”

It was true. They were still at Incheon Airport awaiting their flight. Momo insisted she get a photo of Mina standing underneath a sign of the airline they were flying with.

“Where did you even get that camera from? Did you buy it specifically for this trip?”

“No of course not. It was a Christmas present from my sister.”

Before the two could continue their conversation, the boarding call for their flight was announced over the loudspeaker.

“This is it then I guess.” Momo sighed.

“Let’s go.” Mina said, reaching her arm out

Europe was their chosen destination for this trip with Germany being the chosen starting point. It was a 12-hour flight from Seoul to Berlin. Luckily the pair we able to score a direct flight as Momo was dreading the thought of a two-hour layover in another country. 

As they boarded their flight, Mina’s phone buzzed from inside her purse. After moving quickly to store her carryon bag into the overhead luggage compartment, Mina pulled her phone from her purse to see who would be trying to contact her at this time of the morning. 

“Hey, Momoring, look at this, Nayeon sent it to me.” Mina said, facing her phone screen towards Momo. 

It was a group photo of the rest of their friends. Tzuyu was holding the phone with Chaeyoung and Dahyun hanging off of her other arm pulling silly faces. Jihyo had her arm slung around Sana’s shoulder while Sana’s arms were wrapped firmly around Jihyo’s waist. They were both looking in Jeongyeon and Nayeon’s direction, sending the pair judgemental stares, probably because from what Mina could tell, they were bickering. 

A snapshot that encompassed the overall dynamic of their friend group rather perfectly. “Those two are going to murder each other one day.” Mina giggled.

Momo could only nod at that statement. “Can’t they just get married already?” She whined.

Mina hummed her agreement, still staring at the photo. “My money is on Jeongyeon to make the first move.” she said as she began typing a reply. 

Momo shook her head. “Nah no way, Jeongyeon is oblivious to Nayeon’s advances and believes them to be nothing more than friendly. Nayeon’s frustration will burst one day and she will let it all out.” 

\--

“Hey! What is that?” Momo whined, grabbing Mina’s attention back from the device in her hands.

“My switch.” Mina replied as she zipped her purse back up before placing it back underneath the seat in front of her.

“You packed your dumb console? If you’re going to be playing that game the whole time, then what am I gonna do for 12 hours?” Momo pouted.

Mina let out a dramatic sigh before asking. “Didn’t you bring anything to keep you occupied?” Earning a sad head shake from Momo. Another sigh from Mina as she reached once again for her purse. “I was going to power through Zelda, but I guess, since I’m nice, we can play Mario Kart.”

Momo rubbed her hands together in anticipation. “You’re making a grave mistake Myoui.”

\--

Unfortunately, it didn’t last long. Both girls grew bored of Mario Kart after five races. For different reasons, Momo was tired of losing and Mina was tired of winning despite putting in virtually no effort.

“You’re just a nerd.” Momo yawned, stretching her arms above her head. “I think I’m gonna take a nap.”

“Good idea, all that losing must have you exhausted.” 

The moment of finally taking the Zelda cartridge out of its case was something she had been waiting for since she sat down. 

Unfortunately again, it didn’t last long. Her switch was out of battery after only 90 minutes of playing. Mina conceded that it was past time she got some rest as well. She turned to look at Momo who was still out like a light beside her.

As she stared at the older girl, Mina let her eyes wander and noticed things that she had never seen before. She had spared looks at Momo many times before in admiration, she was in terrific shape, being a dancer and all. But she never really focused on her face, she knew what Momo looked like, she was beautiful, and that was that. This time however, Mina noticed certain features she hadn’t paid attention to in the past from Her defined jawline, puffy cheeks to the small but prominent mole on the front of her neck. Mina was surprised that in the 6 years she had known Momo, she hadn’t noticed how beautiful she looked while asleep, partnered with the quiet, adorable little snores she let out every few seconds, Momo looked like she was at peace. A small smile played on Mina’s lips as she stowed away her purse.

Once she found herself comfortable, well, as comfortable as possible in an economy seat airplane, Mina plugged in her earphones and closed her eyes. Exhaustion had well and truly kicked in at this point and before long she drifted away to sleep.

\--

A parched mouth, loud surrounding ambience noise and an arm tapping her shoulder is what wakes Momo from her deep slumber. It wasn’t until the tapping was accompanied by a soft “Uh, excuse me…” that Momo realised someone was trying to grab her attention. She looked up and spotted a woman standing at the foot of a trolley, dressed immaculately in uniform. The flight attendant. The lady waited a few moments for Momo to regain consciousness.

“Sorry to wake you but we are handing out the meals now.”

“Oh ok uh…” Momo stuttered, still a bit dazed. “What is it?”

“Well there’s two options, you can either have a spinach and bacon quiche or a vegetarian pasta.”

Momo turned to her friend beside her. “Mina what do you wa—oh…” She paused, realising Mina was turned, facing the wall with her head resting on the window, out to the world. Momo was reluctant to wake the younger girl on the assumption that she would still be exhausted, she didn’t get much sleep last night as they had to wake up at 3am to catch their flight.

“Uhhh… just two quiches please.” A quiche was the safe choice in this instance, from what Momo remembers, Mina enjoys them, and it’s better eaten cold than a bowl of pasta which is helpful if she doesn’t wake up for a while.

“Two quiches coming right up.” The flight attendant whispered as she handed Momo two warm containers. “Careful, they’re still hot.”

“Thank you.” Momo replied with a grateful smile. “Do you have any ketchup?”

“Yes of course.” The standing woman said as she rummaged through the middle drawer of her trolley. “Here you go, enjoy.”

“Great, thank you.”

Not long after Momo began tucking into her food, she felt the girl beside her begin to shift and turn before slowly opening her eyes. Mina woke to the smell of cheese and bacon as well as the sound of someone beside her eating.

“I was going to wake you, but you looked like you were having a good sleep.” Momo said with a mouthful of quiche.

The younger girl hummed her agreement as she rubbed her eyes. “I was, as good sleep as you can get on an airplane.” Mina mumbled before glancing down at the fold out tray in front of her. On top sat a container with tin foil covering the lid and two small red sachets beside it.

“It’s a quiche, it should still be warm.”

“It comes with ketchup; they must have got my emails.”

“Okay first of all, you didn’t send them any emails. Second of all, I had to ask for it... You’re welcome by the way.”

“You know me well.” Mina chuckled as she ripped open one of the sachets before emptying its contents over her meal.

The rest of the flight was smooth and thankfully for both girls, went by very quickly. Once they finished their meals, they both agreed to try and get another hour or so of sleep before the plane landed. It would be 5pm when they arrived so if they both slept a little more, they would be able to explore berlin for a little, get a small taste of the city’s nightlife.

—

The sight of Momo standing in front of her, peering through the lens of her camera was something that Mina quickly realised she would have to get used to. 

Click.

“Wow! I mean it when I say that nobody on this mortal plane strikes a pose like Myoui Mina.”

Click.

A sign that read ‘Willkhommen In Berlin’ was the backdrop for this particular photoshoot (If you could even call it that). If it were up to Mina, this sign would have received nothing more than a passing glance but Momo insisted on stopping. “Can you explain to me again what’s so fascinating about a welcome sign?”

“I’m creating a scrapbook of photos from this trip and the theme I’ve adopted is ‘travel vlog’. It’s imperative in travel vlogs to show something that indicates when you’ve arrived in another country and a picture of this sign is a perfect way to do so. I’ve thrown you in there to keep up with my quota of Mina pics required by the girls, I’m killing two birds with one stone here!”

Any semblance Mina had of resentment towards her current situation was washed away when she mentioned her photobook thing. Mina thought that if she was able to make a photobook that she was proud of and enjoy doing it in the process, it could possibly open up a door that maybe in the future she would decide to pursue. After all this was a major reason for this trip, for Momo to find a hobby outside of dancing and eating. She weighed the pros and cons and concluded that a mild case of public embarrassment would be well worth if it would help Momo discover something she enjoys.

\--

“Why don’t we have places like this in Korea?” Momo wondered out loud as both her and Mina took in their surroundings. A large gathering of people huddled in front of a giant projected screen in a vast outdoor area. It was an open-air cinema, a spot that the pair just so happened to stumble upon while wandering the streets close to where they were staying. Only a short walk from their accommodation and fairly cheap ticket prices saw the two girls pay entrance to the cinema.

Momo frowned when she saw that the younger girl wasn’t paying attention but instead had her eyes downcast on the piece of paper in her hands. “It says here that tonight’s movie is ‘The Outsiders’ from 1984 starring Tom Cruise, Patrick Swayze and Ralph Macchio and it starts in 20 minutes.” Mina explained as she examined the pamphlet that was handed to her upon arrival. She then looked up from the paper and met Momo’s eyes. “Have you seen it?”

“Nope, have you?” 

“I haven’t seen the movie. But I read the book that this film is adapted from when we were in school. Come to think of it, you should have read it as well… If I remember correctly It was assigned to us for homework, Miss Kim’s class.”

“Doesn’t ring a bell.” Momo shrugged. “Any who, Popcorn. We can’t watch a movie without popcorn, I say we line up over there to get some.” She said, pointing to the stand that was off to the far side of the venue. Mina nodded and they began making their way over.

\--

As the pair returned from the line at the concession stand with popcorn, soda and red liquorice in hand, they waded through the mass of people until they came across a spot they would come to claim as their own. It was toward the back end of the outdoor theatre, but the screen was large enough and there were enough speakers positioned around the venue that viewing and listening would not be compromised. It was a bed of grass big enough for the both of them to fit and elevated enough to be able to see the screen whilst seated.

They had only been sitting down for the best part of five minutes when discomfort began to kick in for Mina. It was cold and she was only wearing a t shirt, she only really started noticing it now because before this they had been walking a fair bit and her blood was flowing, now that they were stationary, she could feel the cold air cut through her already thin clothing. She folded her arms in a feeble attempt to keep warm.

Momo, whilst spooning copious amounts of popcorn into her mouth turned to look at Mina and noticed how her arms were folded and that they were covered in goose bumps. In what seemed to be an instinctual reaction, Momo put her popcorn aside and reached for the zip of her jacket, earning a weird side glance from Mina.

“What are you doing?” The younger girl asked.

“You can wear my jacket; it seems you need it more than me.”

“No it’s ok, I’m fine. It’s not that cold.”

“I’m not blind you know.” Momo teased. “You have goose bumps. 

Mina put a hand up to protest but stopped. Momo always knew when she was lying, and her argument was difficult to dispute. “You can’t just give me your jacket, you’ll get cold.”

“You raise a good point.” Momo acknowledged. “I guess there’s only one real compromise.” In a sudden movement, Momo engulfed Mina in a tight back-hug, resting her forehead into the crook of the younger girl’s neck. “Feel better?”

“Is it too late for me to renege on my refusal and gratefully accept your generous offer?” Mina asked while trying to free herself Momo’s vice grip, an impossible task, Momo was far too strong. 

“Sorry, one time offer. Just shut up and enjoy the movie, will you?” 

Mina was about to raise her voice in further protest but the movie had started and a quick glance around at the surrounding audience who were all fixated on the screen at the front of the venue made her realise it would be a bad idea to cause an uproar here, amidst a crowd of strangers. Instead she drew a deep sigh and slumped in defeat, sinking further into Momo’s arms as her cheeks warmed. It was certainly embarrassing, they were in public after all, but perhaps what was most embarrassing was how much she was enjoying it.

Behind her was a girl whose heart was also skipping a couple beats. Momo was thankful that her jacket was padded so Mina wouldn’t notice how it was aggressively pounding against her chest. Momo was a naturally affectionate person so a back-hug wasn’t exactly an out of character thing for her and to be honest, it was just a way to make Mina a little embarrassed. It backfired. For a second she thought about letting go and just giving Mina her jacket, but selfishness kicked in, she was enjoying this too much to stop and that’s where the heart palpitations began. Part of her she wished she wasn’t wearing a jacket because it felt like it was just a barrier preventing her from having direct contact with Mina’s skin, another part of her was thanking her lucky stars that she was wearing a jacket because the feelings she was having were most definitely NOT feelings you’re meant to have for your best friend. She attempted to zone in on the film as a form of distraction from her current seating arrangement, it didn’t last very long, 20 minutes, tops because as her breathing steadied and her heartbeat slowed to a normal pace, Momo found herself rather uninterested and began dozing off with Mina in her arms. 

—

“5 out of 10, didn’t really understand it but was saved by their interesting fashion.” Momo said as they followed the crowd of people exiting the cinema during the end credits. 

“I imagine it’d be difficult to understand a movie you slept through most of, plus, I could literally hear you tearing up behind me at one point... so...?”

“I was awake long enough at the start to piece together the fact that those two boys were friends and I when woke up to make sure you hadn’t wriggled yourself away from me, he was on a hospital bed about to die. Poor Donnie, may he rest in peace.” Momo whimpered, wiping an imaginary tear from her eye.

“Johnny.” Mina corrected.

“Yeah, that’s what I said!”

“Sure it is.” 

—

Their first day – their first real day in Berlin was spent at Museum Island. During the brief stint of research they conducted on Berlin before they left Korea, they discovered that this was a must visit area when travelling to the city for the first time. For a couple foreigners who had never really stepped foot out of Asia, to say that their surroundings were merely breath-taking would be an understatement of gargantuan proportions. Large stone buildings, the likes of which were only found in the foreign rom coms they would watch together from time to time and bridges that arched over the small river that ran through the city. It was picturesque to say the least. 

“This place is seriously unbelievable.” Momo gaped. 

“You said it.” Mina nodded, doing another quick 360. “The museum buildings look old, but in a good way… if that makes sense?”

“It does, you’re right, they look old, but timeless. They look like they’re made of stone so when they deteriorate it almost makes them look better. In my opinion anyway.”

“They have boats as well! – down here, look.” Mina pointed down in the direction of a small passenger ferry emerging from underneath the bridge they were standing on. “We for sure have to ride on one of those to-” She stopped mid-sentence, Momo turned to face her, a puzzled look washed over her face. 

Mina’s jaw was on the floor as her eyes followed a stranger passing by, a closer look made Momo realise the person wasn’t exactly what Mina’s eyes were fixated on, she was staring at what they were carrying. A white rectangular cardboard plate with food on top. Typically, Momo would be the more likely of the two to gush over food in such a manner but this food just so happened to be doused in what looked to be ketchup. 

“Where did they get th-” Mina didn’t even bother finishing her sentence as she turned to look in the direction that the passer-by was walking from. At first glance all that was visible were cars, traffic was busy. Mina was determined to find the root of what she could now smell, it smelt incredible. thankfully, soon after, a small food stand appeared from behind the line of vehicles. It was just across the street. “Oh! It’s there!” Mina exclaimed, pointing in the direction of the stand. Momo squinted, trying to mouth of the name on the sign in front of it. “w w wur wurs? Wurst? What’s a w—whoah hey! Wai--” Momo found herself being pulled with heavy force as Mina gripped her wrist tightly and sped off towards the sign.

“Curry Wurst?”

The stand owner nodded. 

“We will take two please.” Mina said while holding two fingers up in case her foreign accent caused any confusion. 

After being handed two steaming plates of hot food and handing one to Momo, Mina spent the next few moments examining the finished product in front of her. The stall owner mentioned that it was a special recipe and had curry powder sprinkled over the top, it was a ketchup lover’s dream and seeing as Mina was an avid ketchup enthusiast, she was on cloud nine. Unable to contain her excitement any longer, Mina took her fork and skewered it into the sausage and fries before taking a sizeable mouthful that was probably a little too large. Her jaw was on the floor for the second time in like two minutes, the first was in disbelief and curiosity, this time in sheer amazement. Momo’s jaw soon followed as Mina fed her a piece from her own plate in an attempt to stop her from piping on about the ramifications of J walking… It worked 

“Wow.” 

“So this is what heaven tastes like.” Mina supposed as she swallowed the last of her mouthful.

“Is this what heaven looks like as well? My goodness!” Momo teased as she wiped a bit of ketchup from the younger girl’s chin with a napkin. Mina pouted in response. “Don’t worry.” Momo chuckled. “You’re beautiful, ketchup beard and all.”

Mina felt her cheeks warm and turn a bright shade of red at the older girl’s compliment so she was more than pleased to see that Momo didn’t catch her blushing as she had returned her full attention to the plate of food in her hand as she spooned in mouthful after mouthful without ever looking up. This gave Mina time to compose herself and form a nonchalant response. 

“On second thought, I think I like it better when you make fun of me.” Mina shrugged, enjoying another mouthful before continuing. “But, I digress, there are more pressing matters at hand right now, namely, how the hell does this taste so good?”

“We’ll look it up, but it may have to wait until later because look, I think they’re opening.” They both turned from the food stall and watched as people began filing through the now open Museum doors. 

Museum Island was a building complex home to 5 full size museums, each with their own unique displays of history. The most popular of which, the Pergamon, was the first Museum the pair had decided to visit. They had only been inside for no longer than 5 minutes yet both of them understood the grandeur of the exhibits on display, from the dark polished wooden floors to the sky-high ceilings, the room itself was grand let alone the giant exhibits it housed. 

“I hope you’re ready to channel ‘Supermodel Mina’, we are going to make chaeng so damn jealous of us!” Momo beamed, rubbing her hands together in anticipation.

Mina was inwardly eye rolling but the idea of making Chaeyoung - the resident ‘art hoe’ of their friend group jealous with photos from European art museums was too good of an opportunity to pass up. 

“How does this look?” Mina asked as she struck a pose.

“Perfect.”

—

_Dear Diary:_

_It’s been a few days. We are in berlin. We’ve been here for about 24 hours, this place is incredible. Mina is in the shower right now. She doesn’t know I have a diary. I’m not ready to tell her, I don’t think I’m ready to tell anybody. Mostly I’ve been okay, having Mina here has been comforting._

_Actually, no, I’m sorry. Sana told me to be honest with myself._

_Being with Mina is confusing._

— 

The partnership with Mina is an amazing thing, truly. Momo takes great pleasure in taking pictures of her beautiful friend and Mina, while reluctant at first, has been willing to participate. It should be perfect, she has a muse that is beyond beautiful, elegant and carries an air of mystery that comes to life in moments captured on camera. 

The pictures were perfect. But maybe that was part of the problem.

Momo was slumped against the headboard of the bed, scrolling through the photos that had stockpiled on her SD card from the last two days while absentmindedly twirling her damp—post shower hair. She had taken many photos of Mina and they were beautiful photos. But they were (and at no fault of Mina’s) mostly just the same photo with a different background. Momo was so caught up in capturing the perfect postcard worthy moment that the magic of having Mina in front of the camera was a little lost. 

As the door of the bathroom opened and Mina walked out while unravelling the towel that was wrapped around her head, a spur of the moment decision saw Momo immediately take her camera and without much thought, or patience, snap a photo. Got’em. The sound of the camera clicking instantly woke Mina from her daydream as her eyes turned to the direction of the sound. 

“What the hell are you doing?!” The younger girl challenged. 

No response. Mina just stood there, confused. It was almost like the second Momo took the photo she decided to just completely dismiss Mina’s existence, her eyes never leaving the camera.

“Hellooooo? Earth to Momo?”

“Hmm? What’s up?” The older girl finally looked up for a couple seconds.

If Mina wasn’t annoyed before she was now. “Why are you taking photos of me as I walk out of the bathroom? it’s… it’s weird.”

“Sorry.” Momo replied with a giggle, returning her eyes back to her camera. “I’ll delete it, don’t worry… There, it’s gone.”

A deep sigh left Mina’s mouth as she let her arms fall back to her side in defeat, she could never stay mad at Momo for very long. “Okay, whatever, just stop smiling like an idiot before I punch you.” 

“Deal.” Momo’s goofy smile quickly turned to a stern, serious glare. 

“You are weird.” Mina rolled her eyes and turned her back as she made her way into the bathroom again.

She hadn’t actually deleted the photo, she just quickly turned the camera in Mina’s direction and hoped she wouldn’t pry any further, thankfully, she didn’t. 

Momo’s goofy smile resurfaced the instant Mina turned away. Her attention returned back to the photo, she stared at it for a while.

Maybe a little too long.

— 

The following week saw the partnership continue with pictures being taken in many different areas of Berlin. from the Brandenburg Gate’ to a ferry ride through one of the rivers that ran through part of the city - to photos taken in front of a giant graffiti mural in a secluded side street they had found whilst aimlessly walking through town; looking for somewhere to have breakfast. Unfortunately for Momo, time didn’t do anything to dissipate the convoluted feelings that she had developed towards her friend. If anything it only further complicated them. It probably didn’t help that on top of the regular – posed appearance photos she took of Mina, she also snapped many, many candids. She tried her best to be unobtrusive about it as she knew Mina was a fairly self-conscious person, only taking photos that if one day Mina ever saw them, she would agree that they were moments worth capturing. These were by far Momo’s favourite photos as they were memories that warmed her heart. 

Like the one she took when Mina was feeding bread to a flock of hungry seagulls

(Momo couldn’t help but stare longingly at the now broken up pieces of sourdough as they fell from minas hands onto the ground for the seagulls to pick away at. 

“You know, when I said we could give them the leftovers, I meant after I was finished eating!”

“But they looked so hungry.” Mina responded, with a tinge of guilt in her tone. “Look at them, they’re starving.”

Momo sighed deeply, Myoui Mina was far too kind for this cruel world.)

Or the one of her bringing a bouquet of flowers that a cart owner had handed over to her nose and inhaling its fresh scent.

(Mina bowed gracefully after receiving a small bouquet of flowers from a cart owner at a market they had visited. “Aww, thank you.”

When she brought the bouquet to her nose, Momo sighed deeply, Myoui Mina is a work of art, far too beautiful to be real.) 

Or one on the front deck of the ferry when Mina had to squint because her eyes are sensitive to the bright sunlight. 

(“You’d think that from the amount of times I’ve had to squint and shield my eyes from the harsh light that I would have invested in a pair of sunglasses by now huh.” Mina joked, raising a hand to her forehead to shield her view.

“Or a cap.” Momo retorted to which Mina broke out into a chorus of chuckles. Externally, Momo was smiling and returning the younger girl’s laughter. Internally, she sighed deeply. Myoui Mina was far too precious to be hers.) 

These photos showcased the real Mina and Momo loved it. Loved her. Wait… Yeah, no, that’s… no. Momo was so confused, she wasn’t sure what her feelings meant. Like, surely, it’s not possible for someone to just wake up one day and start falling for their best friend, right? So then why exactly was she noticing things about Mina that hadn’t seen before and why did they make her heart do somersaults. Even Mina just laughing at one of her lame jokes was enough to make her head spin. She started dreaming about her as well, often waking up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night as her dreams were usually quite intimate. She was certainly a mess and if she wanted to not ruin this trip, she would have to create some boundaries. 

On the other side of the fence, Mina wasn’t sure where she stood, she had noticed that Momo was acting weird, like she was walking on eggshells but didn’t know why. Mina being Mina instantly assumed the worst, assuming that Momo had somehow caught on to her feelings and was uncomfortable about it but didn’t say anything because they had been friends for such a long time and didn’t want to hurt her feelings. Momo had refrained from showing any physical affection and Mina quickly realised it was something she severely took for granted. 

\--

As the week came to an end, so too did their time in Germany. They left with a hint of regret for not staying long enough to venture outside of the country’s capital. But they also left with a feeling of excitement because their vacation wasn’t over just yet, it was more so just getting started. 

\--

“Hey, aren’t you going to ask to get a photo of me in front of that big ‘Welcome to Rome’ sign?” Mina queried, pointing over to a wall they had just walked past. 

“Oh, you want me to? Sure I can take one” Momo replied, reaching for her camera bag.

“It’s not for me! You know I think it’s lame, but didn’t you say you were going for a travel vlog theme in your photo collection and that it was mandatory to have something to indicate when you’ve arrived at a new place?”

“Oh yeah, I did say that didn’t I.” Momo

“Are you still going for that or not?”

Unwilling to tell the Mina truth, that she had completely abandoned the travel vlog theme and decided that having no theme was what she was now wanted to go for, she lied. “Yeah of course, sorry, I just kinda spaced out, I’m just tired, I guess. Thanks for uh… thanks for reminding me.”

Mina eyed the girl for a second, studying her features. While Momo had developed the skill to tell when Mina was lying, Mina had also acquired the ability to tell when her friend was hiding something from her. She wasn’t sure whether she was too shy to ask if something was wrong because she thought Momo deny it, making things even more awkward. Or that she was too scared to ask in fear of Momo actually telling the truth as she assumed the truth would be something she wouldn’t like. Either way it was a lose-lose situation and she decided to just keep her mouth shut. 

\--

“Hey, Momo?”

“Hey, what’s up?” 

Mina cleared her throat before speaking. “Jihyo just messaged me, I think everyone is at her place and they want to FaceTime us to catch up.”

“Let’s do it, I miss them.”

“Me too.”

-

“The pictures you sent us at the art museums were amazing!” Chaeyoung exclaimed.

Mina responded “Yeah, we figured you’d like those. The pieces look even better in person.”

“Oh I bet, Momo is actually pretty good at taking photos but I’m sure they don’t do them justice.”

“So how are you two holding up?” Jihyo asked

Mina and Momo shared glances at each other, both waiting for the other to answer. Mina broke the silence after a few seconds. “Y-Yeah, we’re doing great. Europe is beautiful, we will have to come back here one day, all nine of us.” She turned to her friend for some form of approval, Momo meekly nodded her head in response.

Sana was the next to speak. “You know, I miss you guys a lot and all, but it is kind of nice to come home and see that there’s still food in the fridge.” She chuckled to herself.

Momo immediately knew the comment was directed at her and wanted to retaliate but couldn’t really come up with anything so chose to just roll her eyes.

“So what have we missed since we left?” Mina wondered. 

“Dahyun almost got me expelled in my first week at art school.” Chaeyoung answered.

“I have many questions. First of all, how?”

“She--” Chaeyoung was about to explain but was cut off by Dahyun. “Don’t be so over-dramatic, they wouldn’t have kicked you out over that! And besides, how is it my fault that they leave open paint cans out?”

“You are in an art room, be careful.” Chaeyoung replied, slowly enunciating each and every word.

Mina sensed that they were about to start a bickering session and tried to change the subject. “Hey… where’s Jeongyeon?” noticing that she wasn’t present.

“Work.” Jihyo answered.

“She’s been working a lot.” Nayeon mumbled under her breath in a tone that Mina could only denote as annoyed. Mina guessed there was some animosity between the two best friends from the way the words left Nayeon’s mouth as well as the ‘not now’ glare Jihyo sent her immediately after. Mina cursed herself under her breath at how that was probably the worst subject she could have chosen and would have much rather listened to Chaeyoung and Dahyun argue.

“Where’s Momo?” Sana asked, her voice echoing from the kitchen.

“She’s right here.” Mina replied, turning the camera to face Momo who at first glance, was sitting next to her, but when she looked again, she noticed that Momo had backed away to the furthest part of the couch. Momo and Mina were currently as far separated from each other as possible while still being on the same couch. Mina moved to close the gap between them and much to her dismay, felt Momo shift awkwardly in place when their shoulders touched.

So this was it then, there was something about Mina that made her feel uncomfortable and while she didn’t know for sure, she had a good feeling that it had something to do with figuring out that Mina has a huge fat crush on her. It hurt, to be honest, but if that was Momo’s decision then she would respect it. 

\--

The partnership continued but Mina felt like it was more of a chore for Momo than anything. She was still too afraid to confront her. It was terrible, eating away at her constantly. Mina predicted that she hadn’t had a decent sleep since leaving Germany. The terrifying thought that of waking and Momo being gone meant for many sleepless nights.

Momo woke from her sleep, this time, not due to being in a cold sweat after one of her erotic dreams, but because of a loud thunderous clap which was then followed by rain, relentlessly pelting against the windows. The violent sounds of it ricocheting off of the walls in Mina and Momo’s shared room. It was a thunderstorm. Her thoughts instantly shifted to Mina; she hates thunderstorms. As she tossed over she saw Mina staring at the ceiling, expressionless.

“Still can’t sleep?”

Mina nodded and Momo felt a tug at her heart, how long had she been awake?.

“Move over.” She said, getting out of her own bed.

Mina shifted slightly to the side before Momo slithered under the covers next to her. Mina found herself immediately enveloped in a big warm hug. 

“You should’ve woken me up.”

“I know.” Mina mumbled. “I was going to but—” She paused as the rest of her sentence got caught in her throat.

“But what?” Momo pressed on, urging her to finish, she wanted to hear her say it.

“I don’t know, it’s just, you’ve been acting kind of strange lately and I thought I probably did something that upset you and I just—" again the words got caught. She drew a deep breath, anticipating that Momo would deny it and that it was all in her head. But she never did. A few seconds passed before Mina felt Momo’s warm breath make contact with her exposed back.

“I know.” Momo whispered, bowing her head in shame as her forehead nestled into the crook of the younger girl’s neck. “I’m sorry.”

“Did I do something wrong?”

“No, of course not, you didn’t do anything. It’s me, I’m an idiot.” 

“Then why?” 

The truth was certainly not an option, not right now and more than anything she just wanted Mina to get some rest, she figured the truth would get in the way of that, so she lied, again.

“I just thought that maybe I was a little overbearing and that I was making you uncomfortable.”

At this point in time, Momo was lying as a big spoon, with her chest flush against Mina’s back, not an ideal position if you’re trying to hide the fact that your heart is pounding erratically. In a sudden knee jerk reaction Momo let go of Mina and turned onto her back, now staring at the ceiling. The younger girl stirred uncomfortably as the absence of Momo’s warmth was noticed and the cold air hit her back. She turned to face Momo, whose most recent words were beginning to register in her mind. 

Mina tried to speak through the lump in her throat. “I don’t…you don’t… make me feel uncomfortable.”

“I’m sorry.” Momo mumbled again. “I got in my own head again and I made you feel uncomfortable.”

“It’s okay.” Mina reassured her. “You’re here now.”

Momo nodded agreeingly. “I am.” She wrapped her arms around Mina again and continued. “I’m here now.” She whispered.

Mina slowly drifted off to sleep in Momo’s arms with a heart 100 times lighter. Recent events didn’t do much to subdue the pinging feeling in Momo’s chest but having Mina in her arms, safe, was enough for her. 

At the end of the day, neither were completely truthful. Momo lied and Mina failed to paint the whole picture. Maybe they are perfect for each other.

—

This was an entry that Momo set on fire, for obvious reasons.

_Dear Diary_

_Okay, I have good news and I have bad news. I’ll start with the good news. The nightmares I’ve been having about the day of my injury have started to fade. I still think about it, but it doesn’t wake me up at night anymore. Now, the bad news, I think I actually like Mina… as more than a friend… I don’t know how it’s possible for me to grow feelings for one of my best friends seemingly overnight, but I have. Maybe It has something to do with the fact that she’s been my muse and after a little bit of curious research I’ve found that falling in love with your muse is a common occurrence and can often fade. The problem is, I think I’ve had a crush on her for a while, I’ve been lying to myself for forever now. Every girlfriend she’s had since I’ve known her, I’ve grown an instant disliking for. Initially, I put it down to me only wanting the best for Mina and they were certainly not the best. But now I’m starting to think i was jealous. (Fuck, it feels good to let it out). Maybe? I don’t really know honestly. I’m still trying to figure this out myself. All I know is, she is everywhere, Myoui Mina is fucking everywhere. She’s there when I wake up, she’s in my thoughts, she’s in my dreams. I literally have wet dreams about Mina, like, what the fuck!? She'll probably be back soon and i would swan dive off the balcony if she ever read this so, yeah, i'm eliminating that possibility._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading.
> 
> sorry it took so long. 
> 
> I love you Mina, sending you lots of love. Take all the time you need, I’ll wait. When the news first broke I thought of waiting until she returned to finish this story but we have no idea when that will be and there’s no telling whether or not i’ll still have the motivation to write it then. 
> 
> comment your thoughts or predictions or whatever, and until next time! <3

**Author's Note:**

> That's the first chapter done! i hope you liked it. next chapter will be mimo in europe! 
> 
> btw i know it's kind of a spoiler but whatever. Momo does find a second passion, do you have any guesses as to what it could be?
> 
> comments and feedback is greatly appreciated!
> 
> Thanks for reading, until next time. :) <3


End file.
